The Avenged
by Lyra Raven
Summary: Sequel to "Loki," this story follows the general path of the Avengers movie. Leya returns when she discovers Loki is actually alive. She meets up with the Avengers team and helps them fight off the alien invasion. But internally, she struggles between her feelings for Loki and doing what is right as ghosts of her past threaten to reemerge as well.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Marvel quotes, characters, plots, etc.**

 **Chapter 1**

 _Hold on. . . don't let go. . . no. . ._

Leya Rivers jolted awake from the nightmare, gasping for breath. The same nightmare, over and over again, that plagued her each night. No matter that she was thousands of miles away from New Mexico, no matter that she was still in college and working three jobs trying to support herself, no matter that she had blocked Jane and Erik's numbers on her phone. She still could never escape the inevitable dream that captured her without fail every night.

At first, she'd found it horrible, traumatic, disturbing. At first, she'd let it affect her during the day, allowed it to follow her around like a lost, whining puppy. But now she had gotten used to it, habituated, like people will do. Now, she shook off the last vestiges of its clutches, splashed cold water on her face, and got dressed, the same as she did every morning before class. She was 21 years old now, and in her third year of college.

Stretching and still yawning slightly, Leya entered the tiny kitchen in her equally tiny apartment and put the kettle on to boil water for tea. While she waited, Leya flipped on her little TV and turned to gather her textbooks and various papers etc. for class.

The TV was always on the news since Leya really had neither time nor interest in watching the reality TV shows or movies on the other channels. Leya settled into her morning routine, enjoying the hum of the news reporter in the background as she searched around for her biology notebook. Suddenly, something on the news caught her attention.

" _. . . attack at an art museum in Stuttgart, Germany. Captain America and even Iron Man rushed to the scene. The attack was preceded by the collapse of a secure government facility, and government sources have hinted that the perpetrator is the same person in both cases. . . "_

Curious, Leya turned to look at the screen. She'd heard all the news stories about Iron Man, Captain America, she knew Agent Coulson, knew about S.H.I.E.L.D., and even had the pleasure of meeting two of their agents; Natasha Romanoff and Clint Barton, who also went by Black Widow and Hawkeye, respectively. Leya had had to admit, they were extremely well-trained. Even a match for her, which was saying something.

On the screen, Leya saw, much to her surprise, Tony Stark, or Iron Man, and Steve Rogers, or Captain America, standing next to each other in a square where she could only assume from the reporter's commentary was in Germany. A crowd of people cowered in fear of someone, and something was burning off to one side. The camera turned to the right, and Leya saw something that made her freeze.

It was really just a blur as the camera swiveled, but it made her blink and squint at the screen. What she thought she saw was a flash of green eyes. It was so quick that it could have been just her eyes playing tricks, just a slant of light. Nevertheless, her heart quickened. She knew she should squash that miniscule glimmer of hope that had suddenly sparked, but she had to be sure. So she booted up her computer and pulled up the latest news stories.

Leya scrolled through an article. She first discovered that the 'secure government facility' that had collapsed was in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Leya knew that was one of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s headquarters locations. Reading further revealed that the person who caused the collapse in New Mexico escaped and had subsequently attacked innocent civilians in Stuttgart, Germany. Leya frowned as she read, then scrolled down where she reached a picture taken at the scene. Leya's hand flew to her mouth and she froze mid-scroll. In the picture was of a man in formal dress clothes – a long black coat, white shirt, tie, and scarf. His black hair was slicked back, but what gave him away were his unforgettable emerald green eyes. And he certainly was unforgettable. Leya could scarcely believe what she was seeing, but it was as clear as day. Leya knew without a doubt that he was, unmistakably, Loki.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Immediately, Leya sprang into action. She flew around her little apartment, throwing items into a suitcase as she hurriedly tidied, called a taxi, and booked airplane tickets. She called a couple classmates to alert the instructor that she would be taking a leave of absence from college for an undetermined period of time.

A mere half hour later, Leya was completely packed. She double checked her single suitcase and purse, headed towards the door, then hesitated a moment with one foot over the threshold. After a moment, she dropped her bags and walked back inside to her bedroom. There, she pulled open her closet doors and parted the hanging clothes. In the back, Leya felt around until she felt a particular spot in the wall. She pulled up, and the wall slid in and to the right to reveal a safe, which Leya punched in the code for. It swung open with a shrill beep to reveal a medium-large sized brown box with a silver lock. The key for box was a simple silver one that Leya wore on a chain around her neck at all times, which she now pulled out from under her shirt to unlock the box. Inside, among other seemingly random items, was a pitch-black bow and a dagger. Leya looked at them for a moment before removing them and relocking the box and safe and replacing the false wall of the closet. Then she closed the closet doors and went back to her luggage, placing the bow and dagger inside her suitcase.

Leya locked the door to her apartment, headed down the stairs, and got into a waiting taxi. She briefly glanced back up at her apartment building, saying a quick farewell as the taxi took off toward the airport.

Leya rushed through security and made it to her gate just in time. She boarded, then sat down in a middle seat between an official-looking businessman and a young girl who couldn't have been more than six years old or so. During the flight, Leya waited until both her flying companions were asleep, then took out a laptop. She had modified the piece of equipment to show the location of almost every S.H.I.E.L.D. base and aircraft carrier they had. Despite their best attempts, S.H.I.E.L.D. had failed to keep her out of their system, and they had finally given up. However there was definitely an unspoken agreement that her hacking would not be permitted to go too far. For now, Leya was content with the info she could garner.

Leya scanned the screen until she found what she was looking for. A certain S.H.I.E.L.D. aircraft carrier, special because it carried a (supposedly) impenetrable prison onboard, was currently in motion and had just passed over Germany. It was now headed to the U.S. Leya's current flight was headed to a tiny town on the farthest east coast of the U.S., the closest she would be able to fly to the carrier. Leya sighed. It looked like another few hours until they reached the destination, so she put her earphones in and settled in for the flight.

The plane touched down right on time, and Leya departed into the sleepy little town feeling tired herself. But now was no time to let that tiredness sink in. She shook herself and headed to a local coffee shop. After getting some caffeine pumping through her body, Leya sat down on a bench with her luggage and pulled out her phone. She scrolled through her contacts until she reached one labeled, simply, "P.C." Leya pressed the number and waited while it rang. She heard three rings before someone picked up.

"Hello, Rivers," a man said in a knowing voice.

Leya couldn't suppress her smile; it was good to hear that voice. "Hello, Coulson. I need a ride up to your carrier," she replied.

"What carrier?" Coulson asked.

"You know what I'm talking about."

Coulson sighed on the other end, "I suppose I do. All right, we'll send someone down. Be at Oliver's Italian Restaurant at 7 pm sharp."

"Thanks, AC," Leya jokingly replied. Talking to Coulson always made her feel better, which was somewhat ironic since she never talked to him except for during stressful or dangerous situations.

Leya could almost hear Coulson rolling his eyes on the other end.

"Don't mention it, but you know you're racking up a lot of favor points for me. You'll have to pay them off someday," he told her.

"Of course I will," Leya assured him, smiling, "See you soon." Then she hung up the phone.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Leya found the restaurant with no problems, and a pilot arrived promptly at 7 o' clock pm, as Coulson had promised. The pilot was dressed in civilian clothing, but Leya could tell who he was. All the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents had a sort of official, stiff, stand-up-straight air to them. Plus he was wearing sunglasses with a tiny S.H.I.E.L.D. logo inscribed on them, unnoticeable to the untrained eye but stood out like a neon sign to Leya.

Onboard the aircraft, Leya met with Coulson, who greeted her with a smile.

"Welcome aboard, Rivers," he said. Of course he had questions. Questions about why she was there, what she wanted. Even still had questions about the last time they'd met, in New Mexico, about the whole Thor-Loki fiasco. But for now, he had more important matters to deal with, and Coulson knew Leya well enough to know two things: 1. She had a good reason for requesting admission onboard and 2. She wouldn't get in the way. Coulson had reserved a room onboard for Leya, and he left her there to settle in a bit.

Leya unpacked swiftly, changing into a black T-shirt and leggings. She yanked her hair up into a ponytail, then sat on the bed in the small room for a while, taking in her surroundings and situation. For a moment, she felt doubt creep up into the back of her mind. _What if that wasn't actually Loki? What if it was an imposter, what if I'm chasing ghosts? What if – why am I really here?_ Abruptly, Leya stood, cutting off her train of thought. She paused a moment, then took out her bow and dagger. She slung the bow over her shoulder and tucked the dagger into her left boot. Then she marched out into the hallway.

Leya stepped out the door of the room and reeled backward. The brilliantly white-washed hallway was crammed with agents and soldiers rushing this way and that. Announcements blared from loudspeakers above and the intense fluorescent lights above only added to the frenetic atmosphere. Leya caught snippets of conservations as she threaded her way through the crowds.

". . . the highest security cell. . . get it prepared. . . hasn't been used, ever! . . . alien gods from another planet. . . Iron Man. . . Captain America. . . the Hulk!" Leya frowned, but didn't have time to ponder any questions. She finally pushed out into an empty hallway. In fact, it was so empty so suddenly that she nearly fell over as she stopped abruptly. Warily, Leya turned in a circle, then paused and stared down the length of the hall. A group of seven or so people were walking down the hallway toward her. She squinted, and saw it was a pod of guards escorting a prisoner. _But who?_ she wondered, even as something in the back of her mind told her the answer. The group marched closer, and Leya walked slowly toward them. Suddenly, she realized who the prisoner was, and she broke into a run. Leya came to an abrupt halt right between the first two guards, who stopped as well.

One of the guards cleared his throat, "Ma'am –" he began, but Leya ignored him. The prisoner looked at her with an expression of mild amusement mixed with something else she couldn't pinpoint.

He smiled ever so slightly, then said softly, "Hello, Raven." Leya forgot to breathe as she stared straight into his green eyes.

"Loki. . ." she breathed, paused a moment, then punched him hard in the jaw. Loki was knocked backward, and the guards quickly pulled him up. He straightened back up, rubbing his jaw with his handcuffed fists.

"Good to see you again, too, darling," he replied, grinning.

Suddenly, all the rage Leya could have possibly felt, all the rage she did feel, all the anger she'd had bottled up inside since over a year ago, burst free and she attacked him. Immediately, the guards in the back pulled Loki away, though not before Leya had a chance to land a few good blows. The guards in the front quickly grabbed Leya's arms and restrained her.

"You! I thought you were dead! How could you!? Do you have any idea – !" she shouted as the guards pulled her away in the opposite direction down the hallway.

Leya watched him as she was dragged away, and Loki looked back at her with an expression that said _I'm sorry_. But that wasn't enough. Because 'sorry' wouldn't give her back the grief she'd spent, 'sorry' wouldn't solve her nightmares, 'sorry' wouldn't make it all better again. When is 'sorry' ever enough, really?


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Agent Coulson walked into Leya's cell looking not just a little irritated.

"What the hell was that? If I'd know you were going to go all crazy ex-girlfriend on him I wouldn't have let you on this carrier in the first place!" he exclaimed.

Leya, who was not in the best mood, scowled at him, "It wasn't anything like that, and don't call me that." But she was tired too, and to avoid an argument, simply told him, "Look, I know I shouldn't have done that, it was just. . . I don't know. But it won't happen again, I promise."

Coulson, looking a bit less angry, nodded, "Be sure that it doesn't."

"Will you let me out of here now?" Leya asked.

Coulson sighed, "I suppose." He gestured to the guards to let her out of the cell, then walked her back to her room.

"Stay out of trouble, Rivers," he said as he left, his usual warning carrying a tad more menace than usual.

"I always try to," she replied, grimacing. Coulson nodded, then shut her door.

Leya sat down on the bed and let out a long exhale, trying to relieve some tension that had worked its way into her. Maybe it was simply the knowledge that she was on the same vessel as Loki, less than a mile away, that put her so on edge. _And how do you feel about that?_ She asked herself in a sarcastic, mock-counselor tone.

Eventually, she did come up with a plan. Leya decided she would try to find where they were holding Loki. _It's worth another shot, isn't it?_ She'd try to talk to him again, and then take it from there.She nodded to herself, and satisfied with her plan, stepped back out into the hallway.

This time the hall was deathly quiet. Leya couldn't see or hear a soul in either direction. Weighed down by the emptiness, Leya moved silently but swiftly through the hallways, turning left and right to get to what she hoped would be the front of the vast carrier. But after a good half hour with no luck, Leya found herself wandering aimlessly more than anything. Just as she was ready to pull out her cellphone and call Coulson for directions (which would have been quite embarrassing) she came upon a screen on the side of one of the hallway walls. Leya walked up to it and rapped a finger against it. Immediately, the screen lit up and, thankfully, showed a map of the entire carrier. Leya studied the map and noted the ways to three locations; the bridge, the lab, and the confinement cells. Then she left and followed the path down to where she could only assume Loki was being held.

Leya rounded a corner and found a two-door entrance with two guards posted before it. She stopped in front of them and put on her best smile.

"Hello, how are you two today?" she asked brightly, though she was cringing internally. _That's really the best you could think of? You sound like you're trying too hard to sell them something._

The guards merely nodded, barely acknowledging her presence. Leya sighed. _Well, what did you expect? All right then, better get straight to the point_.

"Can I go through those doors?" she asked.

One guard said, "No."

"Why?" she persisted, "What's in there?"

The other guard gave her a hard look, "Look miss, this is a very high security matter, and I can't divulge any information. Please leave."

Leya sighed again, then turned and started walking away.

"Must be one of Coulson's pets he brought onboard," Leya heard one of the guards mutter behind her. And that made her mad. She hadn't been in a particularly great mood in the first place, but now she whipped around and swiftly knocked out both guards, who fell with barely a sound. Leya stood over them, breathing hard with rage.

"I am not anyone's pet!" she spat, then stepped over them and opened the doors.

Leya walked through the doorway onto a long, metal walkway. She was standing in a large, round-shaped room with no visible ceiling and a floor that looked like it had the capability of opening up. The metal bridge she was standing on appeared to be the only exit or entrance, and it lead toward a circular cell with large, curved glass windows. And inside the cell was Loki.

Leya's breath caught. She started walking slowly down the length of the bridge toward the cell. Leya stopped just in front of it and stared at him. Loki came over to where she was and stood looking down at her.

Leya took a breath, "Hello, Loki."

A smile played on Loki's lips, "Hello, Raven."

The two stared at each other for a long moment. Somehow, everything Leya had felt, everything she had been bursting to say to him, she couldn't say it.

So instead, she asked, "What are you doing here?"

"Getting the throne I deserve," he replied.

Leya shook her head, "Still feeling resentful? Why do I feel like history is repeating itself?"

"No, this time will be different. This time, I will win," he said.

"Why? Because human lives are tiny, because we are inconsequential?" Leya accused.

Loki turned away.

Leya softened, "Loki, you don't have to do this. I could help you clear your name. We – you could go home, to Asgard, to anywhere you want."

"I think it's a bit late for that," Loki replied softly.

"Perhaps it is," Leya said quietly after a pause. She looked down, "I better go back. They'll be wondering what's going on." Then she turned and walked out without looking back.


	5. Chapter 5

******* _ **Note: Sometimes school gets very busy and I do not have a chance to write or post new chapters. I do my best to keep up, but sometimes it is difficult. Apologies for the delays!**_

 **Chapter 5**

Leya exited the room and kept walking. It took her a few minutes to realize her cheeks were wet. _Damn it._ She thought. _I never cry. Don't cry now. Pull yourself together._ She stopped, suddenly feeling weak, and sat down against the wall. Leya buried her face in her hands. _What am I going to do?_

She could break Loki out. Leya knew S.H.I.E.L.D. security well enough, certainly. But that would destroy her good terms with Coulson, which she often sorely needed. Plus, she liked Coulson. And anyway, what would they do? They couldn't stay on Earth – Loki would hate it, and Coulson would probably find her. As fugitives, they would never get back to Asgard, and Loki would be arrested the moment they touched down on the Bifrost. _What about Nidavellir_. . . Leya thought, _I can't stay there, but maybe I could convince someone to take him in. . . no._ Leya pushed the idea out of her head. Even if she had any way to communicate or transport there, she had no idea what state her home realm was in. And the Asgardians would probably find him there, too.

Leya sighed. _Listen to yourself._ Loki wasn't a good influence on her, that was for sure, and she was doing everything she could to suppress her feelings. Now, she stood and decided to find Coulson, so she headed toward the bridge.

As she entered the bridge, Leya found none other than the elusive Nick Fury standing in the center of the helm. He was dressed in a long black leather trench coat, and looked quite intimidating. However his only acknowledgement of her presence was a brief glance in her direction. Some of the agents manning the controls paused to look at her when she entered. Some of them she recognized, and there must have been some talk about her among S.H.I.E.L.D. agents because several of them she didn't know seemed to have a spark of vague recognition in their eyes when they saw her, the kind of recognition when you hear stories about someone and then meet them for the first time in person. Coulson looked up and approached her as she entered. He gently placed his hand on her shoulder and guided her towards a door in the back of the room.

"You've got some explaining to do, but not just to me. We've got some important people working on Loki's case, and its important they hear what you have to say, too," he told her. Then he let go of her shoulder and opened the door.

Leya stepped through, then promptly stopped in surprise. Coulson shut the door behind them and came up next to Leya.

"This," he said, gesturing with his arm, "is the Avengers Initiative."

Natasha Romanoff, Tony Stark, Steve Rogers, and Dr. Bruce Banner. Or, if you're fond of their superhero names, Black Widow, Iron Man, Captain America, and the Hulk. And then there was Thor, too. All of them, some of the best-trained, strongest, most ingenious people in the world sitting around a table. And they were all looking at her. Leya could barely contain excitement, but she forced herself to calm down.

Thor rose and a couple quick strides brought him over to her. He embraced her briefly, then put his two enormous hands on her shoulders and looked her in the eye.

"Leya. How have you been? Are you all right?" he asked.

Leya looked up at him and attempted a smile. "Yea," she tried to say it strongly, but it came out a weak and broken whisper, "yea, I'm fine." Then she let out a laugh, a short laugh that felt too big and loud in the room. Thor stared at her hard for another moment, then let her go.

Natasha gave Leya a quick smile, "Hey there, Rivers. Good to see you again." Leya smiled back briefly.

"Where's Barton?" she asked.

"Loki turned him," Romanoff replied.

"Oh," was all Leya said. She cleared her throat. Then she cleared her throat again, and stepped forward.

"Okay then. My name is Leya Rivers, for those of you who I haven't met yet. It is, truly, an honor to be here. I'm sure you're all wondering why I'm here, and I will tell you, but first, some background.

You all know Thor at this point, and likely also know how he came to Earth about a year and a half ago. But what you might not know is that his brother, Loki, was on Earth at that time as well. I met him and we – we went through some stuff together."

Here Leya paused, then continued, "I guess I'm here to help you fight off the alien invasion. Because that's the right thing to do, and because I've made some mistakes in the past that I've learned from. But let me make this very clear: I will not kill Loki."

Leya let her last statement remain static in the air until Coulson stepped forward.

"All right. I'll let you all alone to get to know each other. Get Leya caught up on what you're working on. By the way, I should mention she's good with science-y stuff," he said, then walked out, shutting the door behind him.

Leya turned back to the group.

"Tony Stark."

"Bruce Banner, nice to meet you."

Leya shook both of their hands.

"Right now, we're running tests on Loki's scepter, trying to find out as much about it as possible," Dr. Banner told her, "Come over here, I'll show you what we have so far."

Leya joined Banner and Stark by the scepter. Even just lying there on the lab bench, she could feel the power radiating off of it, as fascinating yet treacherous as Loki himself.

Romanoff and Thor rose. "Why don't we leave the science geeks alone," Natasha said. They left. "I'll come back in a bit," Thor told Leya.

For the next couple hours, Leya worked with Stark and Banner. Working with them was possibly one of the best experiences Leya would ever have in her life, and at one point she couldn't help but think _This will look great on my resume._

"So, what exactly is your relationship with Loki?" Stark asked her at one point. Leya paused for a moment before answering. Banner didn't turn around, but Leya saw his head tilt to hear her response. She couldn't answer them truthfully, that was for certain. They would deem her a risk to the operation and Coulson would probably confine her to her room. But she also didn't want to outright lie to either of these men.

"Well. . . he never listens to me," she replied vaguely.

"Is that all?" Stark asked.

"Yep, that's pretty much it," Leya said without turning to look at him.

Stark shook his head and gave up. Banner turned back to his work.

A while later, Thor reentered. He made eye contact with Leya and said, "Come with me. Romanoff wants you to see something."

Leya walked out with Thor.

"So, how is Jane doing?" Leya asked him.

"I heard she's fine, S.H.I.E.L.D. put her in a protection program, which I am grateful for," Thor replied, "You. . . don't keep in touch with her anymore?"

Leya shook her head, "No, not really. We sort of lost touch after. . . last time." Leya did not mention the fact that she had deliberately blocked both Jane and Erik's cell numbers.

Thor waited a few minutes as they continued walking, then asked Leya, "How have you been, really?" Leya sighed, "It's hard to explain. I – I thought Loki was dead. I accepted that, I really did, and I was actually on the way to moving on." Leya carefully avoided telling Thor about her nightmares. "But then I find out he's still alive. He didn't even tell me himself – I found out from an online news article! I don't know if I should be relieved that he's alive or hate him for doing that to me. And all the stuff he's doing – first Asgard and the Frost Giants, now Earth and whatever aliens are coming – I don't know, it just complicates things more. I care about him, I do, but if he keeps this up he's going to end up killing me someday," Leya told Thor. She didn't say whether she mean that literally or figuratively. Maybe that was because Leya wasn't sure herself.

Thor stopped and turned to face Leya.

"Promise me whatever you choose, you'll be careful. I consider you one of my good friends, especially here on Earth, and I don't want you to get hurt," he told her.

Leya smiled, "I know, and I really do appreciate your concern. But despite my age compared to yours, my mind isn't that much younger than yours. And I can look after myself. But thank you, Thor."

"All right," Thor said. The two continued walking. Eventually, they reached a door that Thor pushed open. They walked into a narrow room with a large glass window. Leya looked out the window and down and was surprised to discover it overlooked the security cell where Loki was being held. Standing in front of Loki but outside the cell was Natasha Romanoff, with her arms crossed. Thor pointed at a green button on the wall, "Press that, and you can hear what they are saying. I'll leave you here." Thor exited the room.

Leya stood for a moment, uncertain about whether she really wanted to hear what Loki would say without her present. And why would Romanoff want her to be there, anyway? Finally, Leya made up her mind. Slowly, she walked over to the wall and pressed the green button.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

". . . I've got red on my ledger, and I'd like to blot it out," Romanoff was saying. Her voice and the surrounding static came through a speaker at the top corner of the room where Leya was watching, and now listening, from.

"Oh, I'm afraid it won't be that easy," Loki replied. His voice sounded low and menacing.

"What would it take to make you call off your alien attack?" Romanoff asked.

"I won't call it off for anything," Loki sneered in reply.

"Not even for. . . her?" Natasha's eyes flicked upward toward Leya, "Let's say we kill her if you don't cooperate."

Loki turned and followed her gaze. It took him a moment to register it was Leya who was watching them. Recognition flooded his eyes. Leya stood tensely, hands clenched, waiting for his response.

Loki was silent for what seemed like an eternity, then he turned his back on Leya

"No, she means nothing to me. Do what you will to her," Loki replied in a dismissive tone.

Suddenly, Leya couldn't breathe. Her whole body stopped working and she stood there, paralyzed. When she could move again, she ran. She burst through the door and past Thor, who was standing outside, letting the door slam behind her. Leya sprinted blindly through the hallways, trying to get as far away from Loki as she could.

 _You really had to choose Loki? The villainous psychopath? I thought you liked nice guys! You spent the past year thinking about him, trying to shake him off, and you know you almost succeeded. Then you find out he's alive and never bothered to tell you, then he says you don't matter to him. And it's not even the fact that he said it, is it? You understood he was calling Romanoff's bluff. It's the fact that he said it in front of you. To your face. That's what tells you he doesn't care about you. You're just a passing fancy to him, nothing, an inconsequential human life he decided to briefly delve into as a hobby._ Leya berated herself over and over, Loki's words echoing through her mind.

Hours later, Coulson found her on the floor in one of the helicarrier's generic white hallways. She sat staring up at the ceiling with a blank look on her face. He sat down next to her.

"Do you want to talk?" he asked her. She remained silent for a while before answering. "No," she shook her head, "No, I'm fine. Don't worry." Leya managed to force the lie through her teeth even though she could tell Coulson didn't believe her. But he knew she wouldn't budge, so he didn't pry.

"What's next?" she asked, putting on a falsely bright expression, "What information did Romanoff get out of Loki?"

"Nothing we can't deal with. Come back to the lab with me," Coulson told her, brushing off her question.

Leya rose and dusted herself off. She tucked a few loose strands of hair behind her ears, adjusted her clothes and weapons, and followed Coulson back down the hallway. Because no matter what happens, life goes on.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Coulson walked with Leya back to the lab where Banner and Stark had called them and the others to give them an update on their research. When they entered, Leya nearly ran into Director Fury. She stopped abruptly, and Fury turned around.

"So you're Leya Rivers. Pleasure to meet you, I've heard a lot. Seems Coulson won't stop talking about you once you get him started," he said, extending a hand.

Leya noticed Coulson duck his head in embarrassment as Leya shook Fury's hand.

"An honor to meet you, sir," she replied.

"Stark and Banner were just giving us a rundown of what Loki has planned," Fury said, turning back toward the rest of the group.

Banner stepped forward, "The basic idea is that Loki is building a generator using the Tesseract that will open up a portal. A portal big enough to get an army of aliens through. But honestly, I don't think we should be worrying about Loki – that guy's brain is a bag full of cats, you can smell crazy on him."

Leya opened her mouth and stepped forward, but Thor beat her to it.

"Have care how you speak. Loki may be . . . ill-behaved, but he is my brother," Thor reprimanded him.

"'Ill-behaved' is about the understatement of the century - he killed eighty people in two days," Romanoff countered.

Thor paused, then, "He's adopted." Leya allowed herself the tiniest smile.

"All right, but the point is that we've got Loki locked up here, while his minions are still building that portal-opener. We should be focusing on stopping them," Banner said.

"How?" Rogers demanded, "We've got no plan, not enough information to stop this portal thing, and no idea how many people Loki's got working for him. If we attack now, who knows what kind of damage might happen."

"But we've got to attack now. Look, we've still got the element of surprise, and how many people could Loki have possibly converted? He's only got one scepter. If we strike now, we could so some serious damage, especially since they haven't finished the portal yet, without a lot of losses on our end. . . unless there's some other information you haven't told us," Stark pointed out, his last comment, though, directed at Fury.

"Mr. Stark, are you implying that S.H.I.E.L.D. is withholding vital information?" Fury demanded.

"I'm not saying anything. But S.H.I.E.L.D. has been known to conceal information from the public. . ." Stark returned. Fury looked at him, well, furiously, no pun intended. That's when the arguing started. Soon, everyone except Leya was pitching in their opinions and the volume of voices in the room rose higher and higher.

Leya stood a bit apart from the group, which was why she was the one who noticed first.

"Guys. . ." she began, but no one heard her. "Guys!" she shouted this time, and everyone stopped talking. The noise stopped abruptly, and they all followed her gaze to Banner, whose hand had somehow drifted backwards toward the lab table during the argument.

"Banner," Fury said slowly, "put the scepter down." Banner turned and realized he had Loki's scepter gripped in his hand. He forcefully, deliberately placed it back on the table, then raised his hands in the air.

"I'm fine, I'm fine. Really," Banner insisted. The group stood in silence for a moment, all of them still wary of Banner. But it turned out they had bigger issues to worry about because just at that moment, the walls of the room exploded inward.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Leya ducked. She and Thor scrambled underneath a lab bench. The explosion had made a hole in the floor, and Romanoff and Banner had fallen through it.

"We've got to go see what's going on," Fury said to Coulson. He nodded, then turned and tossed a handgun at Leya.

"Take it, you might need it," Coulson said. Leya nodded and grabbed the gun. Fury and Coulson left.

"We have to suit up," Rogers said, and he and Stark left.

Leya turned to Thor, and as much as she hated to say it, she said, "Loki. We have to check on Loki." Thor nodded, then he and Leya ran out from under the lab

Leya sprinted behind Thor who parted the masses of people simply by his sheer size. When they reached the metal bridge leading to Loki's cell, they saw Loki standing and patiently waiting while the glass door slid open. Thor ran toward him. Loki froze as if bracing himself for impact, but Leya saw straight through his deception.

"Thor, stop! It's a trick –" but it was too late. Thor ran through Loki's projection, straight into the cell. He whirled around just as the door slid closed behind him. Loki appeared next to the control panel for the cell.

"Are you ever not going to fall for that?" he asked derisively.  
"Loki!" Thor pounded on the glass with his hammer, making a small crack. Immediately, the cell shook as a huge blast of air from above blew down, the circular shape of the room creating a powerful wind tunnel.

"The humans think us immortal. Care to test that?" Loki asked, humor in his voice and one hand on the button that released the lower doors and the holding cell.

"Loki, no!" Leya ran at him, but he was too quick. Loki used his powers to fling her backwards. Leya landed hard on the ground.

"Stay out of this!" Loki shouted. Leya glared daggers at him.  
"Why," she demanded, "Because you care about me? I think you made it very clear that I don't mean a thing to you."

Loki held her gaze for a brief second, then turned away. In that moment, Leya saw something in his eyes, something deeper than his usual cool, indifferent demeanor. Something. . . _warmer? Kinder? Ashamed?_ This was why he frustrated her so much. Unlike most people, Loki was about as revealing as a stone wall and Leya could barely read him at all. Every time she tried, she hit dead end after dead end. And maybe that was why she knew she'd never be able to trust him. But she had to push these thoughts from her mind because at that moment, Coulson appeared carrying a huge gun that resembled a portable cannon.

"Hey there. So this is made from the Destroyer's technology, but I don't know exactly what it does," he said, pointing it at Loki, "Want to find out?"

But before he could pull the trigger, Loki suddenly disappeared. He reappeared behind Coulson and stabbed him through the back with his scepter. Coulson barely made a noise as he fell, but his eyes grew wide as he slumped down to the floor. Loki yanked the scepter out with a look of no remorse on his face.

"Coulson!" Leya cried. Loki took Leya's distraction to turn back to the controller panel and pull the lever that released the holding cell. The cell, Thor and all, immediately plummeted out of the helicarrier into the air, the floor closing behind it. As much as Leya wished she could have helped Thor, she knew it was too late at this point. And anyway, Thor could handle himself. Leya started crawling over to Coulson.

Loki straightened, preparing to leave. Then Coulson, using the last of his strength, pointed the weapon at Loki and pulled the trigger. A fireball-like bullet shot out of the barrel and caught Loki full in the stomach, sending him flying and crashing through the wall.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

"So that's what it does," Coulson said weakly, then slumped back down, exhausted.

Leya smiled sadly, "You always know just the best time to make a joke, AC."

Coulson had always been so kind to Leya, like an uncle. Coulson had found her and helped her get a life started when she'd first come to Earth. Coulson had been the anonymous recommendation that got her the intern spot with Jane, that had led her into all this mess. Coulson was, without a doubt, a superhero in his own right. Leya knelt next to him and held his hand while he died. She stayed with him until Fury and some other agents arrived. Fury ordered Coulson to be taken to the medical center. Then he pulled Leya to her feet and walked her to a meeting table in the back of the bridge where he sat her down. Leya looked up and saw Rogers and Stark there as well.

"Where are Romanoff and Banner and. . . Loki. . . ?" she asked.

"Romanoff is dealing with Barton. Banner's. . . other half jumped off the helicarrier to attack a small plane we sent to distract him. Loki got away," Fury replied.

"Oh," was all Leya said.

Fury reached into his pocket and pulled out a deck of trading cards. He tossed them onto the table, and they scattered as they landed.

"These were in Coulson's pocket when he died. He never did get you to sign them," Fury's last comment was directed at Rogers, who picked up Coulson's Captain America card, which was smeared with blood. Leya watched Rogers, staring at the card with the look of a hero who had let down his fans.

"Coulson died still believing in the Avengers Initiative, still believing you could pull your sorry selves together into a team. Now the fate of the planet depends on you all, so I suggest you start shaping up," Fury said, his voice steely and firm. He turned and exited the room.

Leya and the other two men sat, feeling rather defeated, around the table.

Stark smirked and crossed his arms, "Some team we are."

Rogers sighed and leaned forward, "Yea, but Fury is right. It doesn't matter what differences we have right now. . . what matters is if we can beat Loki and save the planet."

Leya gave Stark a sidelong look, half-expecting him to come back with some snarky remark about Rogers sounding all patriotic. But to her surprise, Stark merely nodded and said, "Then we better get started."


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Inside the belly of the helicarrier was a weapons room, the place where Stark's Iron Man suit and Rogers' Captain America uniform were currently being housed in addition to all the weapons. The group got ready in there. Stark and Rogers suited up while Romanoff reloaded her pistols and Barton refilled his quiver of arrows. Leya already had her bow, but she grabbed a quiver of arrows as well. After making sure her dagger was tucked securely into her boot, she decided to reload the handgun Coulson had given her as a backup. She found a belt for the gun and slipped it around her waist.

As the group made final preparations, the group discussed where to start looking for Loki.

"It's not as if we have very many leads seeing as the helicarrier is a wreck and we've just recovered from the attack," Rogers pointed out.

"True, but notice one thing," Stark said, "Loki is being very public about this whole spectacle. When he first arrived he blew up an entire S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters. And in Germany? Didn't bother to hide at all. See, Loki's a full-tilt diva. He wants flowers, he wants parades, he wants a monument build to the skies with his name plastered on. . ." Stark suddenly trailed off as he and everyone else then realized exactly where Loki would be.

Rogers broke the silence. "Barton. Can you fly one of those things?" He gestured toward one of the fighter jets resting in the hanger just next to the weapons room. Barton nodded, and soon the team was loaded and taking off in the direction of Stark Tower.

As they approached, they saw a brilliantly blue stream of light leading from the balcony at the top of the tower up into the sky. It reminded Leya of the Bifrost. Where the stream touched the atmosphere, a hole in the sky formed through which tiny black figures flew toward Earth.

Barton landed the jet in the middle of the city, which was a mess. The group disembarked and were immediately attacked by a dozen or so Chitauri. The group quickly dealt with them. They were rewarded with a brief moment of peace, but then they heard a loud whizzing noise that put them back on guard. A moment later, Thor arrived with a boom that knocked up a large amount of dust. Leya coughed and fanned the air along with the others, but she was glad to see he was okay.

"Do you know what the aliens are?" Leya asked him.

"They are called the Chitauri, although I do not know much about them," Thor replied.

"Well then, we'll have to treat them like any other army," Rogers said, "Barton –" Rogers stopped talking as he and the rest of the group suddenly heard the sound of an engine growing closer. They all turned, tensed again, but fortunately it turned out to be Banner. He was in a shirt and oversized pants, puttering toward them on a motorcycle that looked like it was made from junkyard parts and scrap metal. Under different circumstances, and had she been better acquainted with her teammates, Leya might have laughed at the comical figure of Banner on the junky bike. The engine suddenly sputtered and died, so Banner ditched the bike and walked over to join the rest of the group.

Thor walked up to him and clapped him on the back, "Good to have you back," he said. Banner gave a grim smile in return, and Rogers continued.

"Right. Barton, you take that roof up there and Stark, go see if you can bottleneck the portal. Thor, go try to stop Loki, and Romanoff, you come with me to fight off the Chitauri down here and protect the civilians. Banner, this would be a really good time for you to get angry, and Leya. . ."

"I'll stick with you and Romanoff," Leya jumped in, "You'll need as much help as you can get." Although the real reason was, of course, that she wanted to put off facing Loki again for as long as she could, and kicking some alien butt would provide a welcome, if temporary, distraction.

"All right then," Rogers agreed, "Let's go."


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

The Chitauri swarmed the city, over building rubble and upturned cars. Leya fought until her arms were sore and her legs hurt from running and she forgot how many she'd killed. This wasn't her first battle, but she couldn't really tell the difference between this one and the last one she'd fought in. It was always the same – wipe out the enemy. But Leya could only distract herself so long, and during a quiet moment, she couldn't resist looking up at the Stark Tower.

What she saw made her resolve to stay away from Loki disappear without a trace. Loki and Thor were standing, face to face, with what looked like Loki's fist pressed against Thor's stomach. Thor fell as Loki pulled his fist away, and Leya saw he was holding a dagger. _I've got to stop him,_ Leya thought. She looked at Romanoff, who had also noticed Thor and Loki, and she nodded. Leya knocked the Chitauri off of a speeder that came low to the ground, and Romanoff launched herself off of Rogers' shield at another one. The two women flew up to the Stark Tower. Romanoff went toward the portal, where the scepter and Selvig were. Leya ran to confront Loki.

Loki was about to step over Thor's body when Leya grabbed his arm. He whirled around to face her.

"Loki, stop this right now. I'm tired of trying to get through to you, and I've certainly tried enough. If you continue down this path, I will hurt you, even if it breaks me to do it. If you care about me now or if you ever did, stop this and don't make me ever do that," Leya hissed.

Loki froze, his intense emerald eyes locked on hers, and for the first time she could see straight through him. He looked. . . well. . . vulnerable. When she'd seen Loki after he'd come back, in the helicarrier, he'd looked older, tortured, and bitter. But now, he looked more like when she'd first met him in New Mexico, when she'd watched him walking away from her on the Rainbow Bridge in Asgard. He was so strong, but inside still just a broken young man. And that was why she cared so much. _All I want is to help you, all I want is for you to see what I see in you._

Suddenly, Loki pulled her close, his grip so tight it was painful. Leya struggled to pull away, but Loki held her firmly.

"Is that what you think? That I don't care?" he whispered fiercely.

"Then why do you push me out?" Leya asked. _You're only hurting us both._

"I can't afford to have a weakness," Loki replied.

"You're anything but weak. Let me in. We can fix this, we can fix everything, together," Leya pleaded. Loki started hard at her, and Leya held her breath. _Say yes, please say yes._

"No."

Loki let go of her and raised the arm holding his dagger. Leya inhaled sharply, then brought her own dagger up to block his blow. Their blades locked, both equally strong and equally unwilling to release first. Leya looked him in the eye once more.

"Then I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," she whispered. Leya kicked him hard in the stomach. Caught off guard, Loki went flying backward. He scrambled to his feet and took another swipe at Leya with, but she was too quick and slashed his arm. Loki gritted his teeth and stumbled backward. Leya approached him, a look of grim determination on her face. The last thing Loki saw – and felt – was Leya's fist coming toward his face before he blacked out.

Leya stood over Loki's unconscious body for a moment, breathing hard. Then she turned on her heels and walked away. Outside, the battle was nearly over, and S.H.I.E.L.D. agents were picking off the last of the Chitauri. Leya joined the rest of the group on the outdoor area at the top of the Stark Tower. Everyone looked pretty beat up; Barton was out of arrows, Thor was holding his stomach where Loki had stabbed him, Romanoff was leaning heavily against a wall, Banner looked exhausted, and Stark's Iron Man suit looked as if it had been pulled through a shredder. Even Roger's shield bore the barest hint of a few scratches.

"How did it go?" Leya asked.

"Not bad, considering," Stark replied in a light-hearted tone. Romanoff gave him a look.

"Stark had a stupid idea," she stated.

Stark rolled his eyes, "It wasn't that stupid, it was actually a pretty good idea considering the city was about to be blown up. Plus it worked." Romanoff just shook her head.

"The World Security Council sent a couple nukes at the city. Stark directed them through the portal and blew up the Chitauri. Thankfully, he made it back through, and Romanoff was able to close the portal," Rogers explained, then asked, "Where's Loki?"

"In there," Leya pointed inside the smashed doors.

"Let me bring him back to Asgard and deal with him there," Thor said.

"Sounds fine, but first we have to clean up, seeing as we managed to make a pretty big mess of New York on our own," Rogers replied.

No one looked particularly excited about the idea, but they all picked themselves up off the ground. Every bone and muscle in Leya's body screamed as she forced herself to follow the others down off the Stark Tower to ground level.


	12. Chapter 12

_Hello all! I felt that this chapter deserved a bit of explanation, so here you go: I actually had the entire character of Leya Rivers/Lyra Raven planned out since before I even had the idea to write her into "Loki" or "The Avenged," in other words I did not just come up with her character for the fanfics. I came up with Leya/Lyra from a creative fiction piece I'm currently working on that could serve as a prequel to these fanfics (although I won't be posting it because it's not a fanfic). In this chapter you get a small glimpse of Leya's backstory, and I hope you enjoy!_

 **Chapter 12**

Once they were done, the exhausted team boarded the jet and flew back up to the helicarrier. Leya joined the others in a meeting room where Fury debriefed them, but Leya remained mostly silent while the others gave their reports. Fury pulled her aside afterward.  
"Walk with me a while," Fury motioned for Leya to join him. Leya followed him out into the hallways.

"Thank you for helping us out," he said, "Considering the fact that you didn't have to, and your. . . relationship with Loki."

"It was the right thing to do," was all Leya replied.

"Tell me, what do you plan to do now?" Fury asked.

Leya sighed, "I don't know."

"Well. . . I did hear from an old friend of yours. A certain astrophysicist. She had an intern at one point, but now I hear she's more interested in a colleague. I could give her a high recommendation of you if you care to look into it?" Fury asked.

Leya looked down and smiled, knowing exactly who Fury was talking about. "I think that would be wonderful," she replied.

"Great. I'll have a jet take you down the day after tomorrow when we pass over where she's located in London," Fury told her.

"Thank you," Leya said.

Fury gave a hint of a smile and clapped her on the shoulder, then turned and went in the other direction, leaving Leya to her own devices.

Leya kept walking aimlessly through the hallways. Occasionally she'd pass a soldier or agent. She might give them a brief nod in acknowledgement, but most of the time they'd ignore her, either too busy to notice or too intimidated to look her in the eye. _Seems I've become something of a S.H.I.E.L.D. legend_ she mused to herself, then sighed, feeling empty and crushed. _It wasn't always like this. Oh, I am so tired, I wish I could go home. . ._ Leya found a small, empty room which she entered, then shut and locked the door behind her. Exhausted, Leya sat down against the wall, letting the darkness and silence of the room embrace her as she closed her eyes and remembered back to an earlier time. . .

 _Leya was five years old when Talia Raven found her in the ruins of the battlefield. "You poor thing," she said. She took her hand, and brought her home to her husband, Elan. "You will live with us now, sweetheart. We've always wanted a daughter. We'll call you Lyra."_

 _The years passed, and Lyra was trained as an Assassin. Little did her mentors or classmates know she would someday become the best Assassin Nidavellir had ever known. She met friends; Thom, Rylan, Andromeda, Morse, and of course Ania, also an Assassin and her best friend, whose last name 'Rivers' Lyra later took as her pseudonym. She was happy. Then came the war with Svartalfheim, then came Natasha Woods, the girl from Earth who was destined for greatness. Then Lyra met Prince Corian, the younger of the King's two sons, and it all went to hell._

 _Lyra and Corian. A close call on Prince Corian's life prompted Lyra to infiltrate Svartalfheim, to work for them, to find out their plans and secrets. She betrayed her kingdom and her friends, all because she loved Prince Corian too much._

 _"Lyra? Why are you doing this?"_

 _"Lyra! Stop this!"_

 _"Lyra, be careful."_

 _And how did it end? Lyra helped win the war, but the King exiled her for treason. She was sent to Earth and told she must never set foot on Nidavellir again, or she would be killed immediately._

 _No one remembers that war. No physical records remain. But Lyra lost her adopted parents, her friends, her home, and her Prince. She had everything taken from her, and so she had nothing left to lose. She became Leya Rivers, went to college, got a job, and ironically enough, worked her way through the life she might have had on Earth had her birth parents not been killed in the first place. She was, essentially, back where she started._

 _Lyra's last vow before she left Nidavellir was to never turn to the darkness within her as a last resort again. That would be simple, just never fall in love again, because love was dangerous. But she was wrong, it wasn't simple. Leya met Loki, another young prince, consumed by the darkness within himself. Loki had been right – one cannot afford to have a weakness, but how could Leya resist? People called him a heartless monster, but to her, he was just a broken soul. Maybe those who want to fix others so desperately are the most broken inside themselves. Maybe Leya saw part of herself in Loki. Maybe those who are heartless once cared too much._


	13. Chapter 13

_Coming to the end here, only one more chapter after this one! But if you want to keep reading, I may be posting another fanfic, a sequel to this one. Enjoy, and thank you so much for reading!_

 **Chapter 13**

Leya was broken out of her reverie when the door of the training room suddenly swung open and light spilled into the room. Leya looked up to see Rogers – the locked door hadn't done much to keep him out.

"Hey there, Cap," Leya said, blinking in the sudden brightness.

"Hi, Rivers. Fury wants to see you," he replied.

 _Again?_ Leya slowly got to her feet and followed Rogers out.

As they walked, it suddenly struck Leya to ask him a question.

"Rogers? What makes a good person?" she asked.

Rogers pondered the question for a bit, then replied, "I thought I knew once, but now I'm not so sure. I think. . . if you do your best to help people and do what is right, that's pretty good. Maybe that means sacrificing yourself sometimes. You know, I think people see me as some sort of patriotic defender of justice and morality, and they think I've got it all sorted out. But really I'm just as lost as everyone else most of the time."  
"But what if doing the 'right thing' means betraying or hurting someone you love?" Leya asked.

Rogers shook his head, "I don't have a good answer for that."

"That's all right," Leya assured him. The two fell silent as they approached the bridge.

Leya walked up to Fury, who in turn said, "Come with me." _We certainly do enough walking on this ship_ Leya thought to herself as she now parted with Rogers and instead followed Fury. Much to her surprise, Fury lead her to the same holding cell she'd been stuck in after her initial outburst upon seeing Loki the first time. Suspicious that Fury might be sticking her back in there (although for what reason she couldn't think of), Leya hung back behind him until she saw who was in the cell. Then she became even more suspicious.

Fury pulled out an electronic key and stuck it in. The door opened with buzz.

"I thought you might want to say your goodbyes in private. You have ten minutes," he stepped aside to let Leya pass.

Leya stepped in and Fury locked the door behind her and walked down the hall, out of earshot. Suddenly, the space in the cell seemed much smaller as Leya found herself very close to Loki.

Leya looked down, but Loki caught her chin with his finger and forced her to look up. He had a gentler look on his face than usual, but Leya wasn't sure if that made her nervous or reassured.

"This isn't the last time, Raven. I'll see you again," he said softly, his voice barely audible.

Leya's blood pounded in her ears, but she managed to squeak out, "I – I figured." _Really? That's the best you could come up with?_ She couldn't understand why she had that too-tight feeling that comes when saying goodbye to someone you'll miss. But suddenly, neither that nor anything else mattered as Loki kissed her.

When Loki pulled away, he stood and held her close. Leya couldn't bring herself to speak, couldn't bring herself to look Loki in the eye. So Leya shut her eyes and held him until Fury came and rapped on the door. Leya forced herself to let go. She turned and walked out of the cell without looking at Loki. She kept going past Fury and out of the cell area until she reached her room, where Leya locked the door.

In the morning, Leya joined the other Avengers in the lab where they were all together, enjoying the last few hours of each other's company. Someone had ordered a large pizza – probably Stark – and Thor was scrutinizing it quite thoroughly, having never seen the food before in his life. Leya couldn't help but laugh a bit at that, even though the day had an air of sadness in it, as if the atmosphere could sense the impending goodbyes that would need to be said.

Leya stayed with the Avengers until late afternoon when everyone got into a jet. They touched down at lovely waterfront park near a S.H.I.E.L.D. facility and everyone disembarked to say goodbye. The group looked rather strange in their street clothes rather than fighting attire, but no less powerful.

"Nice working with you," Stark told Leya. Banner nodded in agreement.

"Thank you. I'm glad to have met you both," Leya replied.

"Take care of yourself, Rivers," Rogers told Leya.

"Sure thing, Cap," Leya smiled.

Thor came up to Leya last. "Take care, Leya," he said.

Leya hugged him, then said, "You too. I'll tell Jane you said hello."

Thor smiled, then he and Loki stepped away from the group. Loki was in chains and had a device covering his mouth that prevented him from speaking, but he looked no less regal, and his eyes did more than enough talking for him.

Thor held the Tesseract in a capsule with a handle on either side. He held one handle and Loki took the other. Loki turned and looked at Leya as he twisted his handle of the capsule to align with Thor's. Leya watched Loki until he disappeared with Thor in a brilliant blue light.

 _Come back to me._

Leya tossed the wish up into the air, hoping somewhere Loki would hear it.

Rogers got onto a motorcycle and gave a short wave as he departed. Banner and Stark pulled away in a sleek-looking, high-tech car. Romanoff and Barton re-boarded the jet. Leya took one last look at the spot where Loki had vanished, then turned and ran inside the jet as well.


	14. Chapter The Last

_Hello all! I'm so sorry it has been so long – I had this last short chapter written but everything started getting so busy and I didn't get a chance to post it. Anyway, here is the final chapter of this fanfiction. Thank you so much to everyone who has stuck with me through "Loki" and this story as well. It really means a lot to me. So thank you, and enjoy this last chapter!_

 **Chapter The Last – Aftermath: Gluing it Back Together**

 _The greater good. The needs of the many outweigh the needs of a few. That's what everybody thinks about, right? Please don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that's a bad thing. I truly believe saving people is wonderful. Look at the Avengers. They're a team now, and it's funny, but I feel proud, like seeing them restores my faith in humanity, just a smidge. They saved the planet from near-destruction, and they're pretty clearly heroes. But what about the villain of the story, what about Loki? They tore apart his plans and diminished him into hardly more than a lowly criminal. For that is what he'll be treated as back on Asgard. They'll lock him up. Oh sure, he'll be comfortable, have everything he needs. He is the King's adopted son, of course. But he'll be left to rot inside that cell. They might have avenged the world, but they destroyed a man in the process._

 _"Villains don't get happy endings." That's what they all say. In fairytales, the damsel in distressed is rescued, the hero gets the princess, the villain dies, and everyone supposedly lives happily ever after. That's what everyone wants, isn't it? A happily ever after? But then again. . . does anyone really ever get a happy ending? Maybe the problem is that everyone's happy ever after is different._

 _But that aside, maybe we need a new kind of fairytale, one where the villain gets a happily ever after, too. It might be too much to ask for, but maybe, just this once, he deserves it._

The next day, showered and somewhat better-rested, Leya exited her room on the helicarrier with the single suitcase she'd packed when she'd initially come on board. _That feels like a lifetime ago._ Romanoff met her in the hallway and lead her down to the hanger where a jet was waiting. All the Avengers except Romanoff and Barton were gone now, and the helicarrier felt big and empty without them.

Barton joined Leya and Romanoff in the hanger to say goodbye.

"Stay out of trouble, Rivers," Romanoff told Leya.

Leya smiled sadly, remembering how that line had always sounded when Coulson would say it.

"I do my best," she replied, then got into the plane.

"All ready?" the pilot asked. Leya hesitated a moment, looking out the window.

"Yea," Leya replied, "Yea, I'm ready."

Leya waved at Barton and Romanoff as they took off. As the pilot cleared the hanger and flew away from the helicarrier, Leya looked up at the expanse of intensely blue sky above, remembered Loki before he disappeared.  
 _I'll see you again_.

 **The End**

 _Leya will return. . ._


End file.
